Brickeys shade close encounter

The last of the six county senior football championship matches played over the weekend took place at Fraher Field on Sunday evening and resulted in a slender two point victory for Brickey Rangers.

Highly competitive all the way, the quality of football was somewhat disappointingly and failed to reach a high standard. Even so the closeness of the exchanges made it interesting to watch and on the run of play, the result could have gone either way. Over all however, the Rangers appeared to be more focused for the task in hands, and despite a late Kilrossanty second goal, the winners showed greater composure and just about deserved to get their season off on a winning note.

Bright start

It was obvious from the outset that both teams really wanted to strike a winning chord. Kilrossanty hit the front after three minutes with a Joey Veale point, even though the Brickeys settled better and after a string of wides duly drew level in the with a fine point from ‘man of the match’ Conor McGrath. They went on to open up a three point lead eight minutes later when Carthach Shalloe and William Queally found the range. However the Comeragh side hit back in style when Brian Mansfield and Joey Veale brought about parity for the second time with points from play.

However, Kilrossanty continued to press ahead and when former Kilmac player Anthony Power came up with a rather fortuitous 22nd minute goal, it did look as if the game was about to go in their direction. Still, a minute later Mark Shalloe pulled a point back and it took a super save from Kilrossanty’s Darren Mulhearne to deny Conor Phelan an almost certain goal to leave a point between the teams at the break.

Back in front

While the tempo of the game might have dipped a little on the resumption, the closeness of the scoring ensured interest. Brickeys had the better of the early stages and after Carthach Shalloe had brought the sides level for the third time, the outstanding Conor McGrath found the net for the black and ambers. The introduction of Mattie Kiely saw Kilrossanty get a point back in the 42nd minute and the former county star repeated the process again in the 51st minute, after Mark Shalloe and Anthony Power (free) had exchanged points in the interim.

As the last quarter took hold, Brickey Rangers laid the foundations for their eventual victory with three points on the trot from Conor McGrath, William Queally and substitute Christopher Power, whose effort could just as easily have been a goal.

To their credit, Kilrossanty fought back well and a terrific Joey Veale goal in the 57th minute gave them fresh hope by bringing the deficit down to the minimum. However, the Brickeys held on well and play had entered its second minute of added on time, when the insurance point in their favour came from substitute Barry Kinsella.